Related EU Projects

The aim of this project was to understand current household water use behaviour and water use patterns in Harbin, North of China, to improve the efficiency of household water use, and encourage the sustainable use and conservation of water resources.

The top level objectives of this study were: 

1. To investigate household water use behaviour and water appliance characteristics; 
2. To analyse household behaviours and appliance characteristics to water consumption;
3. To estimate household water consumption and pattern;
4. To examine the reliability of the research results;
5. To compare the results of this research with other Chinese cities;
6. To analyse any water-saving potential for the residential sector.

In more detail the research explored the following:

Household water usage behaviour:

Personal water usage habits, including appliance use frequency and the corresponding average duration e.g. shower use frequency and duration of each shower.

Characteristics of water appliances:

Water flow rates associated with different appliances e.g. showerheads and taps; Common types of water use appliance at home; The percentage of people who owned water efficient appliances e.g. dual flush toilet

Water use patterns:

Analysis of survey results and classification of water use patterns (low/moderate/high consumption); The impact of the identified patterns  

Comparison analysis of water pattern:

Identification of any differences in water use patterns between Harbin and other countries or Chinese cities, and the underlying causes of these differences.

Lu, T. (2007). Research of domestic water consumption a field study in Harbin, China. Master of Science. Loughborough University.

The project was commissioned to achieve the following objectives:

Broaden baseline data by investigating the causes of high water consumption in the residential sector.

Determine the potential for water saving opportunities in such homes.

Promote positive behavioral change and help Abu Dhabi residents appreciate the real value of water resources, reduce wastage and increase end use efficiency.

The project targeted residents of Abu Dhabi and Al Ain living in villas and Shaabbias whose consumption was in the red band (greater than 7000L/day).

The project consisted of the following stages:

Phase 1: involved recruiting 45 participating homes from a pre-selected list of high water consuming properties in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain.

Phase 2: involved conducting detailed surveys and water use audits for the 45 participating homes. The surveying and auditing exercised comprised the following activities:

- Irrigation and landscape audit
- Consumer behavioral survey
- Plumbing audit

Phase 3: involved analysing the gathered information and generating statistics on household water usage estimates and patterns.

Phase 4: the data analysis phase provided better understanding on water usage in the studied homes and determined the potential for water saving opportunities. Summary reports on current water use breakdown in the studied homes, together with water saving recommendations were provided to the residents to encourage the adoption of Waterwise measures in their homes.

Results can be obtained from the following link:

http://www.waterwise.gov.ae/en/research/research-studies/in-home-water-use-audit-project.html

The whole Mediterranean area is characteriszed by a strong need of new solutions able to provide sanitations services while reducing water use and wastewater discharge. The SWMED project focuses on optimising the per capita water consumption at household and urban level through the implementation of water saving devices, reuse of treated wastewater, rainwater harvesting, and a pool of technologies collectively known as Sustainable Water Management (SWM). The project has achieved the stated objectives primarily by the installation of Sustainable Water Management (SWM) in demonstration houses during house visits.

https://www.keep.eu/keep/project-ext/10834/SWMED?ss=3d3626826ba7d857bdc4d38ea697aef2&espon